Syringe structure



April 28, 1964 J; L. HIGGINS ETAL 3,130,724v

SYRINGE STRUCTURE Filed May-7, 1962 ins 1e United States Patent 3,130,724 SYRINGE STRUCTURE John L. Higgins, Daytona Beach, and Fritz Deuschle, St. Augustine, Fla., assignors to Roehr Products Company, Inc, De Land, Fla, a corporation of Delaware Filed May 7, 1962, Ser. No. 192,638 3 Claims. (Cl. 128-218) The present invention relates generally to a cartridgetype syringe, and more particularly to a disposable hypodermic syringe of the cartridge-type which has a barrel adapted to receive a cartridge or vial containing a medicinal composition.

It has been found convenient and economical to package and dispense many medicinal compounds in a single or multiple dosage form by enclosing a measured quantity of the medicinal compound in a sealed disposable cartridge or vial, such as a glass or plastic tube which is sealably closed at one end by a fixed pierceable diaphragm and sealably closed at the other end by a plunger slidably mounted in the glass or plastic tube. The plunger or piston is adapted to have a piston rod secured thereto to permit reciprocably moving the piston. Since it is important to form a secure engagement between the piston rod and the piston in order to permit aspiration prior to injection or to draw a fluid into the cartridge, it is preferable to have the piston rod form a secure threadable engagement with the piston.

When a cartridge of the above type is inserted into a cartridge syringe barrel and the piston rod inserted into a threaded recess or threaded projection formed on the piston, it is frequently diflicult to threadably engage the piston rod with the piston because the cartridge or vial in which the piston is mounted tends to rotate about its longitudinal axis when the piston rod is rotated to effect the desired threadable engagement.

The forming of a threadable engagement between a piston rod and piston becomes a problem where it is desired to have a completely closed sterile cartridge syringe unit, since there can be no lateral openings in the syringe barrel through which the cartridge can be held stationary by the operators fingers, as in the conventional cartridge syringe. And, where it is necessary to use cartridge units which vary appreciably in diameter, the problem of preventing their rotating in the syringe barrel when engaged by the plunger rod is particularly troublesome.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a disposable cartridge-type syringe having improved means of forming a threadable engagement between a piston rod and a piston disposed in a cartridge unit mounted within a syringe barrel.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe with improved means of forming a threadable engagement between a piston rod and a piston of a cartridge disposed in a syringe barrel which does not have lateral openings extending through the syringe barrel.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a sterile cartridge-type hypodermic syringe unit which is adapted to securely engage cartridges of varying diameter when disposed in the barrel of the syringe and which is able to maintain the cartridge in a predetermined position within the syringe barrel.

Other objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe having a cartridge mounted therein in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view partially in elevation taken along the line 2--2 of FIG- URE 1; and

3,130,724 Patented Apr. 28, 1964 ice FIGURE 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the line 33 of FIGURE 2.

The foregoing objects of the present invention are achieved by providing adjacent the lower or discharge end on an interior lateral wall of a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe barrel one or more axially extending ribs projecting radially inwardly a short distance sufficient to engage a lateral end surface of a cartridge or vial structure which is mounted in the syringe barrel so that the cartridge or vial is securely held within the syringe barrel in a predetermined position.

In FIGURES 1-3 illustrating one form of the present invention there is shown a molded plastic cartridge syringe 10 having a continuous generally cylindrical barrel section 11 with a reduced diameter section 12 at the lower end of said barrel section 11 with a diameter slightly larger than the discharge outlet end of the cartridge to be mounted therein. A hypodermic needle hub mounting section 13 is provided at the forward or lower end of the section 12 which is adapted to engage securely the hub 14 of a double-ended hypodermic needle cannula 15. The double-ended cannula 15 is formed with an inwardly or rearwardly extending relatively short closure piercing section 16 and an elongated outwardly or forwardly extending administration section 17 adapted to be inserted into the patient. Integral finger-engaging arms or wings 18 are provided adjacent the upper end of the barrel 11.

In the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 through 3 a combined piston rod-sheath member 20 is adapted to be mounted over the end of the cannula section 17 and hub 14 to protectively enclose the cannula section 17. The ex treme forward end of member 20 is sealably closed by a reduced diameter end section 22 which has threads 23 formed on the outer surface thereof. The member 20 after being removed from the syringe 10 is adapted to have the end section 22 placed in threadable engagement with a piston 37 slidably mounted in the end of a medicinal cartridge 30.

The cartridge 30 can be of any conventional structure, and in the form illustrated in FIGURES 1-3 is made of a short length of glass tubing 31 open at both ends and having a maximum diameter such that the cartridge is freely slidable within the syringe barrel 11. The forward end of the cartridge 30 is formed with a reduced diameter neck portion 32 and an end flange 33. A pierceable diaphragm, such as a rubber end cap 34, sealably closes the lower or forward end of the cartridge 30 and is sealably held against the flange 33 by a metal ferrule 35 which is crimped around the neck portion 32 and the end flange 33. The ferrule 35 has an axial opening through which the inner cannula section 16 passes to permit piercing of the end cap 34.

In the upper end of the tube 31 is a piston 37 sealably mounted for slidable engagement within the tubing 31. The upper surface 38 of the piston 37 is recessed and also provided with an integrally threaded portion 38' which is adapted to threadably receive the end section 23 of the piston member 20.

The cylindrical section 12 at the forward end of the barrel section 11 has provided on the inner lateral wall surface 40 thereof one or more, and preferably two or more, oppositely disposed axially extending ribs 41 which project radially inwardly a short distance so that the ribs 41 are adapted to engage the forward end of the cartridge 30 and retain the cartridge 30 in a predetermined position within the syringe barrel 11 when the cartridge is fully seated in the barrel 11.

In the preferred embodiment shown in FIGURES l-3, the ribs 41 have a relatively narrow inner edge portion which exert a compression force on the metal ferrule 35 or other deformable circumferentially extending band sutficient to form indentations in the ferrule 35 to effectively hold the cartridge 30 in the syringe barrel 11 against relative rotary movement thereof with respect to the syringe barrel and piston rod when the piston rod member 20 is brought into threaded engagement with the piston 37. i

The syringe barrel of the present invention as herein described can be formed of any suitable material including glass, metal or the like. It is preferred, however, to mold the syringe of the present invention of a form-retaining plastic material, such as polyethylene, polypropylene or polystyrene. Other plastic materials having similar properties, whether or not the plastic is transparent or translucent, can be employed.

It should be understood that the syringe barrel with axial projections formed hereon of the present invention can be adapted to operatively engage a cartridge unit having a lower end diameter or discharge outlet diameter which is no smaller than the body portion of the cartridge unit. Also, if desired, the axial projections formed on the inner surface of the barrel section can be adjacent the upper end of the syringe barrel section or intermediate the ends thereof.

Others may practice the invention in any of the numerous ways which are suggested to one skilled in the art, by this disclosure, and all such practice of the invention are considered to be a part thereof which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A cartridge syringe and cartridge unit assembly which comprises; a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe having a generally cylindrical barrel section for slidably receiving therein a medicinal cartridge unit, a medicinal cartridge unit having a smooth lateral surface portion which is deformable and slidable within said barrel section for moving into operative engagement with a hypodermic needle cannula, said cartridge unit having slidably mounted therein a piston member adapted to form a threadable engagement with an actuating piston rod member, said syringe barrel section having on an inner lateral surface thereof at least one axially extending projection integral with said barrel section and extending radially inwardly with a relatively rigid inner edge surface which friction- .ally and deformably engages said smooth lateral surface portion of said cartridge unit when said cartridge unit is seated in said barrel section; whereby said cartridge unit is restrained against a tendency to rotate about its longi tudinal axis when a piston rod member is brought into threadable engagement with said piston member.

2. A cartridge syringe and cartridge unit assembly which comprises; a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe having a generally cylindrical barrel section for slidably receiving therein a medicinal cartridge unit, a medicinal cartridge unit having a smooth lateral surface portion which is deformable and slidable within said barrel section for moving into operative engagement with a hypodermic needle cannula, said cartridge unit having slidably mounted therein .a piston member adapted to form a threadable engagement with an actuating piston rod member said syringe barrel section having on an inner lateral surface thereof a plurality of radial projections integral with said barrel section and extending radially inwardly with a relatively rigid inner edge surface which extend axially from an end wall of said barrel section and which deformably and frictionally engage said smooth lateral surface portion of said cartridge unit when said cartridge unit is disposed in said barrel section; whereby said cartridge unit is restrained against a tendency to rotate about its longitudinal axis when a piston rod member is brought into threadable engagement with said piston member.

3. A cartridge syringe and cartridge unit assembly which comprises; a cartridge-type hypodermic syringe having a generally cylindrical barrel section for slidably receiving therein a medicinal cartridge unit, a medicinal cartridge unit having smooth lateral surfaces slidably mounted in said barrel section for moving into operative engagement with a hydodermic needle cannula and having slidably mounted therein a piston member adapted to form an operative engagement with an actuating piston rod member, said cartridge unit having a lower end portion provided with a deformable smooth metal circumferential band, said syringe barrel section having on an inner lateral surface adjacent the lower end thereof a plurality of radial projections integral with said barrel section and extending axially from the lower end wall of said barrel section, and said radial projections provided with a relatively narrow inner edge portion which exert a compression force on said band sufficient to deform said band when said cartridge unit is seated in said barrel section; whereby a locking engagement is formed between said barrel section and said cartridge unit to maintain said unit in a predetermined position and restrain said cartridge unit against rotation about its longitudinal axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,594,493 Brown Aug. 3, 1926 2,677,373 Barradas May 4, 1954 2,778,359 Friedman Jan. 22, 1957 2,789,559 Breitenbach Apr. 23, 1957 2,954,029 Metten Sept. 27, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,073,156 Germany Jan. 14, 1960 

1. A CARTRIDGE SYRINGE AND CARTRIDGE UNIT ASSEMBLY WHICH COMPRISES; A CARTRIDGE-TYPE HYPODERMIC SYRINGE HAVING A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL BARREL SECTION FOR SLIDABLY RECEIVING THEREIN A MEDICINAL CARTRIDGE UNIT, A MEDICINAL CARTRIDGE UNIT HAVING A SMOOTH LATERAL SURFACE PORTION WHICH IS DEFORMABLE AND SLIDABLE WITHIN SAID BARREL SECTION FOR MOVING INTO OPERATIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE CANNULA, SAID CARTRIDGE UNIT HAVING SLIDABLY MOUNTED THEREIN A PISTON MEMBER ADAPTED TO FORM A THREADABLE ENGAGEMENT WITH AN ACTUATING PISTON ROD MEMBER, SAID SYRINGE BARREL SECTION HAVING ON AN INNER LATERAL SURFACE 